Curried Chicken Salad

Chicken salad is a much- loved comfort food. There are as many recipes as there are cooks, but here is my favorite version. Tasty and slightly exotic, it will wake up your taste buds and start your day with at least a small bang! A perfect Brunch dish.

Serves 4—6

3 skin-on, bone in, chicken halves, about 11/2 lbs. total weight
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons olive oil
3 fresh rosemary sprigs, each 2 inches long
½ cup dry white wine such as Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Grigio
¼ cup mayonnaise
¼ cup plain yogurt, preferably Greek style.
3 tablespoons crème fraiche
1 teaspoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon ground tumeric
5 celery stalks, finely chopped
½ small yellow onion, finely chopped
¼ cup chopped fresh flat-leaf (Italian) parsley, plus sprigs for garnish
¼ cup chopped almonds or cashews, lightly toasted. (optional)

Season the chicken breasts with ½ teaspoon of the salt and ½ teaspoon of the pepper.

In a frying pan over medium-high heat, warm the olive oil. Add the chicken breasts, skin side down and cook until golden, about 5 minutes.

Add the rosemary, turn the chicken breasts over and cook until brown on the second sides, 4 or 5 minutes longer.

Pour in the wine and stir, scraping up any browned bits from the pan bottom. Add ¼ cup water, cover, reduce the heat to low, and cook, adding more water if necessary, until the chicken is opaque throughout, about 35 minutes.

Set aside and let cool. The chicken can be cooked ahead, covered, and refrigerated overnight.

Remove the skin from the chicken breasts and discard. Remove the meat from the bones and cut into ½ inch cubes. Set aside.

In a bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, yogurt, crème fraiche, cumin, cayenne, tumeric, the remaining ½ teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper.

Add the chicken, celery, onion, chopped parsley and nuts (if using). Turn to coat with the mayonnaise mixture.
Transfer the salad to a serving bowl or platter, garnish with the parsley sprigs. Serve at once.